A HISTORY OF NORTH SHIELDS. NORTH SHIELDS is a town on the north bank of the river Tyne in North East England, 8 miles north east of Newcastle Upon Tyne. Historically part of Northumberland, its name derives from the Middle English schele meaning “temporary sheds or huts used by fishermen”. History. North Shields was first recorded in 1225, when the Prior of Tynemouth, Germanus, decided to create a fishing port to provide fish for the priory which was situated on the headland at the mouth of the river Tyne. A number of rudimentary houses or “shiels” were erected at the mouth of the Pow Burn where the stream entered the river Tyne. The wooden quays that had been erected were also used to ship coal from local collieries which were also owed by the Priory. Soon the population of the new township numbered 1000. The burgesses of Newcastle were determined to preserve the custom rights that they had enjoyed up until then, and petitioned the King in 1290 and managed to suspend trade from the new settlement. It was therefore forbidden to load or unload cargoes at North Shields. Despite this the settlement continued to develop as a centre for fishing and exporting salt, produced at local saltpans. The town as it was by now was originally restricted to a narrow strip of land alongside the river because of a steep bank that hemmed it in. Eventually due to overcrowding in the 18th century buildings where erected on the plateau some 20 metres above the overcrowded unsanitary dwellings below. Shipowners and businessmen occupied the New Town whereas the working people remained in the lower part of town. A series of stairs linked the low riverside part of town with the newer higher part of town which were lined with slum dwellings although they have now been cleared away the sets of stairs still remain to this day. Landmarks. Because of the difficulties navigating ships into the mouth of the river Tyne due to the treacherous rocks known as the “Black Middens” buildings were erected in the 16th century with permanent burning lights to be used as a guide by mariners. These were known as the high and low lights and they still stand today albeit remodelled as private residences. In 1806, a market place was opened on New Quay. In 1870, work began on constructing a fish quay to provide shelter for the docked fishing boats. The Quay is still in use today. One of North Shields’ oldest landmarks is the “Wooden Dolly” statue. In 1814, the female figurehead of a collier brig was placed at the entrance to Custom House Quay, on Liddle Street, and stood there until 1850, when it was vandalised. A second figurehead was placed on the same spot. The “Wooden Dolly”, as the figurehead was known, was used by seafarers as a source of good luck charms, by cutting pieces of wood from her to be taken with them on voyages. Eventually the figurehead was defaced beyond repair and after 14 years it was replaced by Wooden Dolly number 3. This remained until, 1901 when it was replaced by Wooden Dolly number 4 in the shape of a fish wife. A fifth Wooden Dolly, also a fish wife was placed in Northumberland Square in 1958 and still remains there today. In 1992, a sixth Wooden Dolly, was placed where the first four had been, at the entrance to Custom House Quay, and can still be seen today next to the Prince of Wales pub.

Industry. In 1887, the towns businesses were listed as marine engineers, chain cable and anchor makers, shipbuilders, roperies, salt works, and an earthenware and stained glass manufacturer. Fishing was also a major employer. Shipyards have been in existence in North Shields since near it’s founding. The smaller yards built the Northumbrian Coble, a small inshore fishing vessel with a lug sail, well known in the North East. Larger yards built wooden sailing collier brigs, used to transport coal to London. Eventually these smaller yards were replaced by larger yards such as the Tyne Dock and Engineering Company and the Smith’s Dock Company. These yards produced Iron vessels for various uses and in later years the North Shields yards were used for ship repair work, with Smith’s Dock surviving until the 1990’s. None of these yards remain today. Regeneration. Following the Meadow Well riots, in July 1992 the government granted £37.5 million over 5 years to regenerate that area of the town. Furthermore an extensive regeneration programme costing £16 million saw the revitalisation of the redundant Albert Edward docks. The Wet N Wild indoor water park, an outlet shopping centre, a bowling alley, a soccer dome and a marina for the centrepiece to the Royal Quays development to the west of the town. Similarly, major regeneration of the Fish Quay to the south-east of the town centre has included the construction of luxury apartments and the conversion of existing buildings into restaurants and vibrant bars. Transport. Rail (Tyne & Wear Metro) The Newcastle and North Shields Railway opened in 1839. In 1847, the railway was extended to Tynemouth when the railway station was built on Oxford Street, off Tynemouth Road. Eventually that station was replaced by a new station further away from the river after new railway lines had been developed to include Whitley Bay. The line closed in the middle part of the last century but, the lines remained and were absorbed into the Tyne & Wear Metro system in 1982. The Metro links North Shields to Newcastle City centre, and to other destinations in Tyne and Wear including Whitley Bay, Newcastle airport and Sunderland. The town is also served by Metro stations in Percy Main and Meadow Well. Local Ferry, a half hourly ferry service for foot passengers connects North Shields to the town of South Shields on the opposite bank of the Tyne. An International Ferry Terminal based at Royal Quays is operated by Danish company DFDS Seaways operate a daily service to Ijmuiden (Amsterdam). Sport. The town is home to the non-league football club, North Shields F.C. Founded in 1896, the team compete in the Northern League. The team have twice played at Wembley Stadium winning 2-1 on both occasions, against Sutton United on 12 th April 1969 at the old Wembley to win the FA Amateur Cup and against Glossop North End at the new Wembley Stadium on 9th May 2015 to win the FA Vase, the successor to the Amateur Cup.